KFC's edible nail polish begs the question, 'But why?'

Lizzy Hill is an internationally published writer, into writing about arts and entertainment, food and drink, feminism and her own misadventures. With a background in film and television production, journalism and visual arts, Lizzy's in...

We've all been taught not to chew our fingernails, but a new KFC advertising campaign wants to give us a reason to do so. KFC Hong Kong took the brand in a direction we totally didn't see coming, releasing a line of edible nail polishes. They come in orange and cream colors with either "Original Recipe" or "Hot & Spicy" flavoring. Their tagline? "Finger lickin' good," of course.

The video accompanying the nail polish line features super-hip young people voguing to electronica while licking their chicken-flavored fingers. This is absolutely nothing like any ad campaign we've ever seen for the fast food giant in the U.S. and shows that KFC clearly has a different target demographic in Hong Kong.

The nail polish comes from the brains of the branding company Oglivy and Mather, which teamed up with the food technology experts behind KFC's flavorings, creating nail polishes from natural ingredients. "The recipe for our edible nail polish is unique and was specifically designed to hold the flavor, but to also dry with a glossy coat similar to normal nail polish," explains the campaign's creative director, Joan Koay, in a press statement. "This campaign is designed to be intriguing and fun, to increase excitement around the KFC brand in Hong Kong."

In the music video released with the polish, KFC asks people living in Hong Kong to choose their favorite flavor of nail polish. Once the votes are in, the company will decide which line of nail polish to produce in Hong Kong.

Edible nail polish is a pretty gross idea, given that our hands are home to about 10 million germs. Our nails are particularly grubby, as they can harbor nasty germs like salmonella and E. Coli, according to researchers at Birmingham's Aston University, so putting them in your mouth is perhaps not the best idea I've ever heard.

That all being said, I have to admit I'd still totally try this nail polish if they brought it to North America. There's no way my curiosity wouldn't get the better of me. Though if edible nail polish is going to become a thing, I just wish there were some tastier flavors to choose from, like rocky road or salted caramel. A girl can dream!